Page:Lives of the apostles of Jesus Christ (1836).djvu/400

 outer temple. But here now is the testimony of the impartial Josephus, a Jew,—himself a contemporary learner of all these events, and an eye-witness of some of them,—who, without any bias in favor of Christ, but rather some prejudice against him,—in this case too, without the knowledge of any such prophecy spoken or recorded,—gives a clear, definite statement of the outrageous murder of Zachariah, the son of Baruch or Barachiah, who, as he says, exactly, was "slain in the middle of the temple,"—that is, half-way "between the temple-courts and the altar." He mentions it too, as the last bloody murder of a righteous man, for proclaiming the guilt of the wicked people; and it therefore very exactly corresponds to the idea of the crime, which was "to fill up the measure of their iniquities." This event, thus proved to be the accomplishment of the prophecy of Jesus, and being shown moreover, to have been expressed in this peculiar form, with a reference to the recent occurrence of the murder alluded to,—is therefore a most valuable means of ascertaining the date of this gospel. Josephus dates the murder of Zachariah in the month of October, in the thirteenth year of the reign of Nero, which corresponds to A. D. 66. The Apostle Matthew then, must have written after this time; and it must be settled by other passages, ''how long after'', he recorded the prophecy.

The passage containing the prophecy of the the death of Zachariah, is in Matthew xxiii. 35; and that of "the abomination of desolation," is in xxiv. 15.

This interesting event is recorded by Josephus; (Hist. of Jew. War, IV. v. 4;) and is one of the numerous instances which show the vast benefit which the Christian student of the New Testament may derive from the interesting and exact accounts of this Jewish historian.

Another remarkable passage occurring in the prophecy of Jesus to his disciples, respecting the ruin of the temple, recorded by Matthew immediately after the discourse to the multitude, just given, affords reasonable ground for ascertaining this point in the history of this gospel. When Jesus was solemnly forewarning Peter, Andrew, James and John, of the utter ruin of the temple and city, he mentioned to them, at their request, certain signs, by which they might know the near approach of the coming judgment upon their country, and might thus escape the ruin to which the guilty were doomed. After many sad predictions of personal suffering, which must befall them in his service, he distinctly announced to them a particular event, by the occurrence of which they might know that "the end was come," and might then, at the warning, flee from the danger to a place of safety.